By the end of Leadership South Dakota, participants are asked to finish a simple prompt: "I will..."
For Megan Greenfield, the statement she landed on captured just how much growth can occur over the course of the program. After traveling across South Dakota, getting to know leaders from a wide range of industries, and learning alongside her cohort, she found herself making a commitment she didn’t anticipate: “I will pursue my master's degree.”
Megan has been with SDN for about four and a half years, serving customers across South Dakota and Minnesota as a network account executive. When she was nominated to participate in Leadership South Dakota, she was immediately excited by the opportunity.
The program requires participants to step outside their typical routines for seven months, balancing their work responsibilities with travel and leadership development experiences across the state. That investment of time made SDN's support even more meaningful.
“I was very honored they asked me,” she said. “They know I’m a mom of two littles, so they were trusting me to get all my work done with the time it takes to be out of the office and traveling.”
According to executive director John Meyer, the mission is straightforward: "We're building the next generation of South Dakota leaders."
They do that by helping participants discover more about the state, connect with one another, and then, as Meyer puts it, "go out and do something."
That’s where the “I will” statement comes in.
“The program has a good reputation for helping people stretch themselves,” he said. “It instills in them this confidence, as well as a community of friends to support them to grow, and really nudges them to go for that promotion or run for the school board, whatever the goal is.”
For Megan, one of the most impactful parts of the experience was the relationships.
Over months of traveling together—often on long bus rides across the state—sharing meals, and participating in discussions, a group of 40 strangers became a close-knit network of friends and colleagues. Participants came from a wide range of professions and life experiences, but the shared commitment to growth created strong bonds.
“You learn quickly that everyone is there for the same reason—to be present and take the most out of this experience—so you just get vulnerable so fast,” she said.
Through conversations, leadership exercises, and shared experiences, Megan found herself learning not only about South Dakota, but also about herself.
Discussions around values and leadership prompted her to think more intentionally about family, community involvement, and the example she hopes to set for her two young children, a two-year-old and four-year-old.
“It made me open my eyes to when my kids get older and the values I want to set in our home. How do I want to raise my kids to be people who are involved in their communities, to do good?” she said.
"There's something that brings out you wanting to be the best version of yourself," she said. "You're surrounded by people who also want to be the best versions of themselves and make an impact in their community."
Some of her most memorable moments throughout the program came during visits to places she might never have had the opportunity to see otherwise, including the Rosebud Reservation and the Brentwood Hutterite Colony.
Those experiences offered a deeper understanding of the people and communities that make up South Dakota, broadening her point of view in ways that directly connect to her role at SDN.
As someone who works in sales and regularly communicates with people from different backgrounds, she said the experience gave her a greater appreciation for the history and perspectives that shape those conversations.
Commercial Sales Manager Chris Aeilts, who completed Leadership South Dakota himself in 2018, said Megan was a natural fit for the program.
"Megan works with people from across the state and the surrounding region and loves building relationships," he said. "Leadership South Dakota is a great way to deepen her understanding of the history of the places and people she engages with."
Since completing the program, Aeilts has seen meaningful growth in Megan, but he also believes the impact of leadership development often extends far beyond the individual participant.
"Megan's understanding of her own significance has deepened," he said. “I think she’s realized the potential of her influence in the world, beginning with her family and spreading to the region through the relationships she develops, through community involvement and her business customers that can span multiple states.”
"One employee can inspire those around them," he added. "One person can set an example that others may be excited to follow."
His own experience with Leadership South Dakota had a similar effect and continues to shape how he approaches leadership today.
"I was able to spend time with people from different parts of the state's economy and realize that my daily view of life in South Dakota is small, relative to the experiences of people across the state in different industries and from different backgrounds," he said.
SDN is committed to supporting opportunities like Leadership South Dakota, as a longtime silver-level sponsor of the program.
“I think it’s important for employees to see that an employer really cares about their overall development and not just the function of their duties,” said Aeilts.
For Megan, the experience reinforced that leadership growth is about more than advancing a career. It's about expanding your viewpoint, building meaningful relationships, and understanding the impact you can have on the people around you.
In many ways, her decision to pursue a master's degree reflects that larger impact the program had on her—encouraging her to continue challenging herself and thinking bigger about what comes next.
"It helps you grow in ways you didn't even know you needed to grow,” she said.
For SDN, that's exactly the kind of impact leadership development is meant to have. By investing in employees' growth, the company creates leaders who bring a renewed confidence back to their teams, communities, and careers.
And for Megan, that looks like a new challenge ahead in the form of an MBA.
